Curitiba Brazil Temple

© 2005, Intellectual Reserve. All rights reserved.

The public open house of the Curitiba Brazil Temple is currently underway and will last through Saturday, May 24, 2008 (excluding Sundays and Monday evenings). The temple will be dedicated in four sessions on June 1, 2008. A cultural celebration will be held the evening before the dedication.

On January 11, 2008, a statue of the angel Moroni was installed atop the spire of the Curitiba Brazil Temple, marking a major milestone in the construction of the temple in anticipation of its June dedication.

To an audience of about 1,200, Elder Russell M. Nelson of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles presided at the groundbreaking ceremony for the temple on Thursday, March 10, 2005. Also participating in the ceremonial dig was Vice-Mayor Luciano Ducci, who represented Mayor Beto Richa. In his remarks, Vice-Mayor Ducci referred to the groundbreaking as a beautiful gift for Curitiba, which celebrated its anniversary just 19 days later on March 29.¹

Two days before the groundbreaking, on Tuesday, March 8, 2005, Elder Nelson presided at a groundbreaking fireside where over 2,200 members were present in a spiritually charged meeting.²

On February 16, 2005, Church authorities met with city officials including Mayor Beto Richa to announce the pending construction of the temple in Curitiba. They explained the significance of the temple for members in the entire region. In addition, they presented two Church programs: Helping Hands and the Perpetual Education Fund. The mayor expressed sincere enthusiasm for the service provided through Helping Hands, wishing that more organizations demonstrated the same zeal for volunteer service as does the Church. When presented with a statue which represents family ties, Mayor Richa said he would place it in his home as a reminder of his own family.³

The beautiful tract of land selected for the temple in Campo Comprido was personally chosen by President Gordon B. Hinckley in 2004 during a trip to Brazil to rededicate the São Paulo Brazil Temple. The temple district will include 23 stakes from the states of Paraná and Santa Catarina. The first Brazilian stake outside of São Paulo was created in Curitiba in 1971; there are now 10 stakes in the city. President Spencer W. Kimball foretold of the temple in 1953 at the dedication of the Ipomeia meetinghouse saying: "One day, in this region, there will be a temple of the Lord."⁴

The Curitiba Brazil Temple was the fifth temple built in Brazil and the second built in the South Region, following the Porto Alegre Brazil Temple (2000).

The Curitiba Brazil Temple is a sister building to the Vancouver British Columbia Temple.